For our
very first interview from Shanghai, we called upon the irrepressible Londoner
Robyn Hitchcock, a man capable of and credited with any number of things.
The Father of Indie Rock or College Rock are but two daunting titles I've
heard thrown about--he is certainly one of the most respectable examples
of how to thrive as a cult songwriter and artist, sometimes threading
the corporate needle and sometimes self-released. He is also a painter,
a short story writer, an actor, a humorist, a raconteur, and a philosopher.
I imagine he is a welcome addition to any interesting party. Certainly
on the phone we found him to be thoroughly engaging, a vital and witty
man of the world.

Have you
seen Jonathan Demme's remake of The Manchurian Candidate? Robyn's
cameo in that fine film was as the "sinister Russian Operative" Laurent
Tokar. In the few scenes that he appeared, he was very impressive and
deserving of more action on the cinematic front. Demme had in fact done
a concert film of Hitchcock some years back called Storefront Hitchcock,
we're shopping for our copy of that soundtrack CD now, as we hope you
will. (That is, those of you whom it has so far eluded--there are quite
a large number of dedicated fans of this icon who has been making records
since the seventies.)

Robyn
didn't release his first record till he was 24, but dozens have appeared
since. The Soft Boys, a London pop band in the heyday of punk, make up
the first leg of a long and ongoing career. Many famous acts in years
to come would cite them as seminal influences, including R.E.M. In his
early thirties he began to release solo recordings, beginning with the
much heralded I Often Dream of Trains. He has just released his
twelfth solo effort, Spooked, which marked the occasion of our
conversation.

We were
aware of the phenomenon called Robyn Hitchcock and the Egyptians, but
ignorant, alas, of their brilliance. (It's depressing sometimes, but you
just can't get to it all, not and do anything yourself, you know.) So
we're grateful to be catching on late, at any rate, and did so because
we were intrigued by the fact that the new CD on YepRoc (one of our favorite
labels) was made in Nashville with Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, the
latter acting as producer. The pair were longtime fans of Robyn, and had
once stood on line to get a record or a guitar signed, depending where
you hear the story. When Robyn saw the two in concert in the UK, the spare
genius of their uncanny chemistry inspired him, and a trip backstage revealed
the mutual aspect of their admiration.

Spooked
is a lovely record of much magic, borne on the ability and tendency
of all three artists to simply stand there with their instruments and
pull it out of thin air. You can actually hear the spirit arise in many
tunes, some that came out of moments of just jamming in a room where,
thankfully, a mic was turned on and some tape rolling. The ghostly spirit
that inhabits the unparalleled tracks of Welch and Rawlings' Time (the
Revelator) can sometimes be heard on this record. And there are very
playful moments as well, from all involved. The lyrics of Robyn Hitchcock
fix upon many creatures of earth, sky, and water, as well as love songs
to the "Televison," various "Demons and Fiends," and a great read of Dylan's
"Tryin' to Get to Heaven Before they Close the Door."

But like
life, the conversation was as much about what we didn't get to talk about.
My Shanghai long distance calling card ran out before we got to discuss
the Soft Boys or Captain Beefheart, his violinist Deni Bonet or David
Greenberger's The Duplex Planet, his Manchurian Candidate
experience or making the concert film with Jonathan Demme, so many things.
But you knew that, despite what a lovely guy he seemed to be, you couldn't
say, "Let me run down to the Xiangyang Market and grab another card, I'll
be right back." After all, he'd already turned the porridge off to begin
the conversation, and was probably looking forward to getting back to
that.

We invite
you in to our conversation with a most original Renaissance man, and be
sure to check out clips to the new CD on the listen page. Check him out
in his new movie (Jonathan Demme's The Manchurian Candidate) and
buy Spooked, on YepRoc Records. continue
to interview